FTC and 20 states sue Dollar General over alleged checkout overcharges

Dollar General received tens of thousands of complaints from shoppers who said the price at the register was higher than the one on the shelf, according to a lawsuit filed Monday by the FTC and 20 states.

The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee in Nashville, accuses the discount chain of routinely charging more at checkout than prices displayed on shelves, price tags and advertisements. It alleges the pattern lasted for years, reached thousands of stores and affected millions of purchases nationwide.

Why it matters: Dollar General has about 21,000 stores, and the FTC says many customers depend on its advertised prices to stretch tight household budgets. The lawsuit alleges the company extracted millions of dollars in unlawful overcharges from shoppers drawn in by promises of convenience, low prices and value. A low-price promise does not do much for a grocery budget if it changes at the scanner.

The case against it: The FTC says Dollar General had policies intended to keep shelf labels and register prices aligned but did not adequately address repeated errors. The complaint alleges the company did not track whether newly printed price labels were actually placed on shelves. The Guardian reported in December 2025 that Dollar General stores failed more than 4,300 government price-accuracy inspections across 23 states over three years, an investigation cited in the federal complaint.

Christopher Mufarrige, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, said Dollar General had "betrayed the trust of millions of American consumers" and caused financial harm to people and communities already struggling to make paychecks last.

What Dollar General says: The company says its goal is 100% accuracy between shelf and register prices, while acknowledging occasional discrepancies can happen. It says store teams are instructed to make things right for customers and that it has improved its price-accuracy processes. Dollar General said it learned of the FTC investigation in early February and will defend the case vigorously, arguing that FTC staff sought a monetary amount far beyond what it considers a realistic measure of pricing discrepancies.

The suit seeks a permanent injunction along with monetary and other relief. Earlier this month, Dollar General agreed to pay $1.875 million to settle separate New York allegations that it repeatedly overcharged customers. The next thing to follow is what the FTC and the states ask the Tennessee court to require at the chain's stores.